Apparently, I owe an apology to all of you who run your dogs while riding your bicycles. You are not all morons. Just some of you are.
I saw a candidate for Moron of the Week on Monday (nice, hot Monday) and my partner and I had an unsatisfying exchange with him as he rode off with his pup. I decided to research the official positions on running a dog beside a bicycle before firing a blast, and found pretty mixed responses.
There are, in fact, devices you can attach to your bike (Springer, K-9 Cruiser) to run your dog. One website supported bike-running as a solution to rising pet obesity.
So, I called some animal welfare experts.
Alison Cross, of the Ontario SPCA, said some dogs should not be run beside a bike or any device that gives the human a mechanical advantage and moves faster than the dog can or should.
As well, dogs shouldn't be run in heat or when the dog itself isn't well, and some dog breeds weren't meant to be runners. Cross said the OSPCA charged and convicted a dog trainer who used inline skates to run her dog.
Kathy Innocente, of the Humane Society of Kitchener-Waterloo, agrees that the conditions of the day, and the health and breed of the dog will determine whether an owner can run it while cycling, but generally, "We wouldn't recommend it."
Both said that the right breeds of dogs can be run by bicycle on cool days, windy days and when conditions are safe (side streets, etc). Neither agency would cite a pet owner simply for running a dog while on a bicycle.
So, a partial apology. But frankly, couldn't you just take the dog to a park and throw a stick? Who wants to worry about running over your dog while riding?